Welcome to Style Diaries, a new series where we research the physical manifestations of our closet tours IRL. We're asking friends and tastemakers to show us what they're *actually* wearing during the week and to provide a little insight into their thoughts on the current state of fashion. This week we are speaking with curator of Mayfair, trailblazing jewelry stylist, and all-around tastemaker Lauren Kulchinsky Levison. When it comes to fashion, Levison knows no boundaries. She mixes frothy Molly Goddard confections with heavy masculine shoes, repeatedly testing the limits of sartorial contrast. A Dora Maar "muse," you can now shop exact pieces from her closet and 100 percent of the proceeds will be donated to the Present/Levison Advanced Fellowship in Inflammatory Bowel Disease at the Mount Sinai Hospital.
What does your style *actually* look like right now?
"My style right now is relaxed elegance with feminine and flowy pieces—not uptight at all in any way. This is pretty much how I dress all of the time, but with it being summer, I'm now in more light-weight fabrics and less accessories."
Day 1:
"I loved pairing this Molly Goddard smock-bodied pink dress with my Christian Dior blouse for a walk into town with Quinn. I live in dresses during the summer—I am not usually a sundress strap girl; however, I absolutely had to have this dress. To make it work for me, I will stick a blouse or a t-shirt underneath. In this case, I also added an Erdem scarf to create a neckline that I felt more confident in. This is the kind of dress that is perfect for summer—you can dress it up or down for any occasion. I wear a lot of Molly Goddard. It is amazing that her collection can go from the big, huge tulle yellow moment I had at London Fashion Week to the hot pink tulle edgy rocker dress (also available on Dora Maar right now), to this feminine pastel cotton frock. I felt totally beautiful in this look. If I needed to pop into a shop or grab a coffee while I was on my walk through town, I was perfectly dressed."
Shop the Look:
‘Marlene’ Cotton Dress
Mini Pouch Crossbody Bag
Straw-effect Hat
Bandana Scarf Paisley Parrot Cotton
Shirt with Buttoned Collar
Cat-eye Clear-acetate and Metal Sunglasses
Nancy’s Summer Picnic Basket
Do you have a go-to outfit formula, or do you prefer to switch it up when getting dressed?
"My formula, so to speak, will always have a lightness to it and something that grounds it. So, for every twirly dress, there will always be that heavier shoe, stiff bag, or darker accent piece or headpiece to keep me firmly grounded on the planet. With me, what I buy has to bring an emotion, a memory, or a dream for it to fit into my life (never mind my closet)."
Day 2:
"This is my 'traveling to the Hamptons' look. Even though we have a home in East Hampton, I always need those last-minute essentials. Packing for the Hamptons in this Mark Cross Turquoise Leather Trunk is the best because nothing gets wrinkled or crushed. The Prada skirt is fantastic because it's a stretchy waist and super comfy for when there is traffic, and the fabric will not wrinkle! Plus, it's colorful and fun, and if the traffic is super bad, I'm already dressed for dinner straight out of the car, jewelry and all."
Shop the Look:
Multicolor Silk Satin Lace Skirt
Cotton Poplin Top
Leather Trunk
‘Grace’ Mini Leather Box Bag
Straw-effect Hat
Vanda T-bar Leather Platform Flats
What energy are you bringing to your ensembles this summer? What are you looking forward to wearing?
"This summer is starting out a bit different, as did the last for obvious reasons. Usually, I start it out in Paris at Haute Couture fashion week and have a week of seeing and wearing the most frothy, beautiful dream dresses. Then I'll spend the rest of the summer in East Hampton, wearing white cotton dresses or floral prints. I'll wear them while working in the store as well as playing golf (not well, but at least the wardrobe looks good).This summer, we are staying out in the Hamptons and our kids and grandkids will be visiting. I'll most likely just be in all of my white cotton gowns, dresses, and my collection of hats, which I love, and fortunately, through all the years of collecting, there is no shortage of either of them."
Day 3:
"I love this gown from Brock Collection that I wore this weekend to my friend's wedding out in the Hamptons. I was super comfortable and felt super ethereal, which always makes me feel confident. I topped it off with one of the many Jennifer Behr headpieces that I have collected through the years. The flowers in the headband complemented the flowers on my gown and picked up the emeralds in my earrings. The wedding was outside, so I actually wore my Celine flat boots—no sinking into the hay grounds for me! The Mark Cross Grace Mini Leather Box Bag had just enough space for my Purell, alcohol wipes, mask (just in case), lipstick, and compact. I wore it cross-bodied so it didn't get in my way, and I hung it off of my chair through the night, which was a plus!"
Shop the Look:
Spring Floral Jacquard Dress
Metallic Ribbon Headband
‘Grace’ Mini Leather Box Bag
Photos: Courtesy of Lauren Kulchinsky Levison
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